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Book Review: Slaughter House-Five – Kurt Vonnegut

It is hard to describe what Slaughter House – Five is all about. It’s about the horrors of World War II on both sides, it’s about a man’s obsession with fantasy books and flights of fancy it affords him to perceived outer space and the concept of time travel. But it only explains some aspects of the book and doesn’t do justice to the delightful read it is. Billy Pilgrim time travels, has been to the planet Tralfamadore and has seen bombing of Dresden. Vonnegut is a true master of the art of storytelling and the tale is told simply, yet it’s compelling and the reader’s immersion in it is complete from the start. An example of the simplicity and yet depth of the narration: “Nobody took Rumsfoord’s diagnosis seriously. The staff thought Rumsfoord was a hateful old man, conceited and cruel. He often said to them, in one way or another, that people who were weak deserved to die. Whereas the staff, of course was devoted to the idea that weak people should be helped as much as possible, that nobody should die.” An amazing thing about the book is the ease with which the writer moves between past and present to the various dimensions of Billy Pilgrim’s life. Never once it causes a disruption. In fact, you look forward to the transition – whether it is to Dresden, Illium, or Tralfamadore as the story is equally exciting on all the dimensions.